Twins who look identical because they have the same surgeon. A baby goat that comes as a gift in a Louis Vuitton handbag, wearing a Richard Mille watch as a collar. A dog who eats caviar. And a woman who is proud to say she owns 40kg of gold. Netflix’s new reality series Desi Bling is about the bling brigade in Dubai and is meant to give us FOMO with its begowned and bejewelled women and its universally ugly men with their gigantic toys.
At a time when austerity has hit the world and Dubai is no longer the Mecca for the good life, there is something quite tragic behind the botoxed faces and the gym-toned bodies. In such a world, TV stars Karan Kundrra and Tejasswi Prakash in full Naagin form are not exactly A-list celebrities, as they are from the Hindi TV industry rather than the Hindi film industry. There are catfights between the mean girls, showdowns between couples and lots of heart-to-hearts between the boys, but despite the vast villas and the gold plates, it seems a vapid life. This is peak cringe viewing, and if the bling is blinding, just borrow some Prada glasses from the cast.